Re: Planetary defenses

Given how hard it is to damage a ship in space from another ship, I'd
think 
the atmosphere and the gravity well make planet-based defenses very hard
to 
pull off.

I figure the missiles launched from the planet take twice as long to
reach 
their target (so make them cheaper and easier to shoot down).

Railguns on the planet need way more power to overcome gravity, so they 
probably don't track well.

I'm not sure about particle beams or non-visible spectrum lasers, but
the 
atmosphere is is great scatterer of visible light (especially sky blue,
eh 
?).  I don't know the numbers, but I bet Indy does.  I'd bet that
visible 
spectrum lasers will also prove infeasible.

My best guess is close-orbit stations and automated weapons platforms.
Tom + Dana McCarthy